


Said It All

by sleepydanceur



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2018-03-11 21:30:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3333572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleepydanceur/pseuds/sleepydanceur
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kyungsoo never realized how much more daunting it would be to wait backstage all alone, without the rest of the members with him to take his mind off the building nerves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Said It All

The worst part about performing, Kyungsoo thinks, is undoubtedly the tense wait backstage right before going up in front of the crowd. He opts for sitting on the bottom step of a small staircase, tucked out of the way from where the backstage staff are bustling around, moving equipment and calling out orders. The nervous roil in his stomach churns uncomfortably and Kyungsoo wrings his hands together, keeping them firmly on his lap, resisting the urge to run his fingers anxiously through his perfectly gelled hair and ruin the stylist’s work. He struggles to unclog his throat from the nervous lump forming, taking quick sips of water from his bottle to freshen up. 

It’s a big performance today. He’s had solos before, all of which were nerve wracking but _this_ , this is the first solo he’ll be performing while playing the piano. It’s been a painstaking few months, trying to learn the basics of the piano, just enough to learn the right notes of the song he’ll be covering for his solo. He’s no prodigy but he’s certainly not terrible and Yixing is a great teacher, with more than enough patience to walk him through the entire process. 

His hands are shaking. Kyungsoo never realized how much more daunting it would be to wait backstage all alone, without the rest of the members with him to take his mind off the building nerves. He stares at his trembling fingers and sighs, feeling a phantom warmth against the tips. 

He recalls the night before, when Jongin had shuffled over to curl up in bed with him while he was sitting against the wall, going over the music notes for his performance a couple more times.

→→→ Jongin flops on the mattress heavily, wriggling and shifting Kyungsoo’s limbs to his liking until he’s got his head pillowed comfortably on his thighs. The warmth of his body is a welcome presence and Kyungsoo doesn’t protest.

“Don’t overdo it, hyung,” Jongin murmurs quietly, reaching up to touch Kyungsoo’s elbow lightly, “You should get some rest.”

“I just need to run through it one more time,” he insists, running his fingers through Jongin’s hair gently, dragging his blunt nails along his scalp soothingly. He watches fondly as Jongin’s eyes begin to flutter sleepily, his entire body going lax under his touch. 

“You’ve practiced it so many times you could do it in your sleep,” Jongin persists, stifling a yawn with his hand, but he doesn’t try to take the papers from him, which Kyungsoo appreciates. He lays quietly on his lap, silent for a long while and Kyungsoo wonders if he’s drifted off by now. 

“What if I screw up?” he whispers, half to himself. 

“You won’t.”

Jongin stares up at him, wide awake with steadfast eyes, like a resolute buoy holding Kyungsoo up before he lets himself drown in his sea of doubt. Reaching up for Kyungsoo’s wrist, he pries his fingers from the sheaf of papers gently to bring them down to his lips instead. He moves slowly, delicately, digit by digit, making sure to press his lips against the pads of all his fingers. Brushing his lips along Kyungsoo’s skin Jongin moves to kiss the inside of his wrist, just above his pulse before moving to press his lips into the centre of Kyungsoo’s palm. It’s tender; intimate and Kyungsoo doesn’t even realize he’s holding his breath until the dizziness sways him. It’s sweet, in a way that is so Jongin even if he’s burrowing his flushed face into Kyungsoo’s stomach, trying to cover up his flaming cheeks. 

His releases his breath in a whoosh when he chuckles, endeared by Jongin’s bashfulness. Finally setting the papers aside, he reaches down to palm Jongin’s hot cheek, coaxing him up so he can kiss him. Jongin sighs into the kiss, and Kyungsoo can feel himself smiling against his lips, angling his head to kiss him deeper, and breaking off only to pepper his face with kisses until Jongin’s shoulders are shaking with laughter.←←←

He’s still shaking but he focuses on the ghost of Jongin’s lips on his fingers as one of the backstage staff motion for him to get ready. He keeps his mind on the way Jongin’s soothing warmth, the way his mouth slots with his own perfectly, the way Jongin’s fingers never left his own. 

Walking out onto the brightly lit stage to the deafening roar of the crowd is as euphoric as it is terrifying, but Kyungsoo swallows down his nerves and smiles, waving to the fans. The grand piano is set up right at the very end of the runway-like stage, surrounded by screaming fans from all sides as Kyungsoo slides onto the wooden bench.

His nerves culminate with the hush that falls as he settles in to begin and he throws an anxious glance over the glossy surface of the piano, searching. He scans the stadium, blinking against the spotlights and _oh_ there he is; Jongin’s in the front row of the VIP section, in plain sight sitting at the edge of his seat, so close he could walk right over to him if he wanted. His smile is still brighter than all the spotlights shining down onto the stage. 

The first key he presses on the piano sparks a surge of confidence in him and Kyungsoo lets the music carry him along. His fingers move with practiced ease, tongue moving around the foreign syllables he’s slaved over for months just for this moment.

“’ _Cause all of me_ ,” 

His eyes follow the constellations of lights from the fans in the darkness as he sings, but he finds himself looking for Jongin again, Jongin who’s watching him so intently, encouraging and proud, his eyes never leaving Kyungsoo’s.

“ _Loves all of you_.”

He ends the song on a sweet, final note and the crowd explodes, cheering so loudly he can barely hear himself thanking them all. Getting to his feet, Kyungsoo bows as low as he can before spinning on his heel and leaves the stage feeling so light he might just float away. Gravity hits him hard again though when he makes his way down the stairs backstage, his legs turning to jelly as he throws a hand out to steady himself on the railings. 

Exhaling, he keeps a hand over his thundering heart, feeling like it might just leap out of his chest. He only has time to exhale shakily before an arm curves around his waist and he’s being lifted right off his feet, hoisted into the air and spun around. 

“You did it, hyung! I told you it would be perfect!” 

Bursting into exhilarated laughter, Kyungsoo holds on to Jongin’s shoulders and presses his cheek into Jongin’s hair, still giddy from the performance adrenaline. Manager hyung’s probably gonna give Jongin an earful for running off backstage but honestly Kyungsoo too glad to have him here in this moment to worry too much about it. 

Jongin lowers him back to the ground to lock his arms around Kyungsoo’s shoulders instead, immediately burying his face into his neck and nuzzles his nose into his skin. Kyungsoo feels the puffs of his breath fanning against his throat, and just barely catches the whispered ‘I love you’ mouthed against his skin.

Settling his cheek against Jongin’s shoulder with a content smile, Kyungsoo presses a small kiss into a spot just behind his ear and says nothing. He’s said all he had to on stage.


End file.
